verb ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Verb

1. 1
   To confuse, disorientate, or puzzle someone, especially with many different choices. transitive

   "All the different possible options may bewilder us."

2. 2
   be a mystery or bewildering to wordnet
3. 3
   cause to be confused emotionally wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

bafflebemusediscombobulatedumbfoundflummoxperplex

Example

More examples

"Tom's paintings were so chaotic and abstract that they tended to bewilder viewers."

Etymology

From be- (prefix used as an intensifier) + wilder (“to lead astray; to go astray, wander”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.